I talked to a very nice laid back Rabbi. I informed him that my ancestry goes back to Edom, as in the Middle Ages Jews referred to the kings of these times as Edom. He was nice and didn’t turn me away. We both agreed that Edom did have righteous men. Without correction I mentioned that the names of people in Torah are like chemical formulas for what these people are like and Zerah is listed among Edom as a chief, while Zerah is also a son of Judah by Tamar. Thus, Zerah is righteous because, "for all your people are righteous (Sanhedrin)." Another example of an Edomite mentioned both as being of Edom and of Israel is Jeush. I would think that the predicted destruction of Edom in the prophets means that those righteous in Edom will either convert (to Judaism) or be slayed.
Craig Hamilton
Sandwich
Saturday, December 20, 2014
4th Craig: Testimony: My Journey to Judaism
1:1 I am not sure what began my journey to Judaism. Perhaps, it was when I questioned my mother about some Orthodox Jews rocking back and forth as a child, and I asked her what they were doing. My mom's response was that they were, "Retarded." Then, later I saw another rocking back and forth on a train from the state of MA to the state of PA, and after observing him, I concluded that he was not retarded. Now I was interested: Why had my mom told me someone was retarded when clearly this was not a sign of retardation!
1:2 Or maybe it was some of the last words of my grandmother on my mom's side I know when she stated that she believe good deeds are the only way to get to heaven. That much made sense. I agreed with her, and never paid much attention to what was said in church, all the while believing good deeds where the way to heaven, which turned out not to be entirely true.
1:3 After having a rough break up with a woman at college, I gave up being good. Being good seemed to get me nowhere, so I was to stop being good and pursue evil. My life then got worse, until Gd spoke to me, “I never thought you would get so far. I AM punishing you!” My response was, “Why are you punishing me (believe me I wanted to know because I needed some relief or I would die)?” Then, the voice said, “I get everyone sooner or later.” I have written elsewhere the rest of the story.
1:4 The one thing I was missing when I was doing good deeds when I was younger is that I was not cleaving to Him. The deeds were empty and cold. Faith is like the fire that warms one from the cold in religion. If you do go deeds and have no faith, then I believe you are missing out on some of the greatness Gd has to offer through the world. So, my advice is to cleave to Him, the Almighty God, and let him provide for you because He will do that if you observe all of His commands.
1:2 Or maybe it was some of the last words of my grandmother on my mom's side I know when she stated that she believe good deeds are the only way to get to heaven. That much made sense. I agreed with her, and never paid much attention to what was said in church, all the while believing good deeds where the way to heaven, which turned out not to be entirely true.
1:3 After having a rough break up with a woman at college, I gave up being good. Being good seemed to get me nowhere, so I was to stop being good and pursue evil. My life then got worse, until Gd spoke to me, “I never thought you would get so far. I AM punishing you!” My response was, “Why are you punishing me (believe me I wanted to know because I needed some relief or I would die)?” Then, the voice said, “I get everyone sooner or later.” I have written elsewhere the rest of the story.
1:4 The one thing I was missing when I was doing good deeds when I was younger is that I was not cleaving to Him. The deeds were empty and cold. Faith is like the fire that warms one from the cold in religion. If you do go deeds and have no faith, then I believe you are missing out on some of the greatness Gd has to offer through the world. So, my advice is to cleave to Him, the Almighty God, and let him provide for you because He will do that if you observe all of His commands.
1:5 In addition, I have met several Jews that attracted me to the religion, simply because they were extra nice to me, especially in hard times. One of them lived on my floor at College. Several others have given me medical care. None have tried to sell me on the religion. However, at some point most have said, "I am a Jew." In addition, there was also a Jewish chatroom on AOL that I frequented.
What is G-d? (Edited)
G-d is the reason the cosmos is here, but even more than
that; G-d is the
Compassionate Shepherd of the Universe that has no physical body, and
beyond that; we claim G-d has taken special interest in His people.
From chabad.org, Psalm 23 tells us, “…The Lord is my
shepherd; I shall not want... He restores my soul; He leads me in paths of righteousness
for His name’s sake. Even when I walk in the valley of darkness, I
will fear no evil for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff-they comfort
me.”
Isaiah, a prophet, tells us of G-d’s love and personal
interest in His people (Isaiah 60:21): “And your people, all of them
righteous, shall inherit the land forever, a scion of My planting, the work of My hands in which I
will glory.” He desires us to do His will; that we wrestle
to understand His ways. He longs for all of us to choose Him. He
wants for us to hearken to His Voice. He desires for us to love Him,
everyone from the most pious king to the lowly worm.
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